Finding Myself
by rocketonthemoon
Summary: Rory Drive is a normal girl who believes mutants are a hoax made up by the media. But when she and her friends go out to celebrate her birthday, she discovers that mutants are real, and she's one of them.   I do not own X-men in any way, shape, or form.
1. Chapter 1

**So Hi. This is really one of my first fanfictions that I've ever tried to do and I started this a couple years ago. First off I'd like to apologize for and mis-spellings anywhere in my writing. My computer does have spell-check but it tends to be a bit moody with it, sometimes deciding it's not going to check anything for me... (sigh). Secondly, thank you so much for giving this a chance. Please review and tell me how I did and if I can do anything to make it better. **

**Thanks again, please enjoy**

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><p>I used to be normal. I used to think mutants didn't exist; they were only a story created by the media. Everything made sense in one way or another. But that all died my last night of a normal life.<p>

It was the last day of summer and it was also my birthday. My friends had decided to go to a club for my party; a send off for the summer, if you will. Up till then, trying to get into a club was the most exciting thing that had happened to me. Since most of us were seventeen we weren't exactly allowed in, but Macy had a friend inside who let us in through the back door.

Most of the night went along smoothly. No one saw us there or if they did they ignored us. The bartender hadn't even bothered to check for ID when one of my friends asked for some beer. Some of the college guys asked us to dance and then for our numbers. It was definitely the best birthday party I'd ever had. But nothing lasts for long.

I was getting a drink before it happened. I remember the water tasted funny, like it had been tainted, but it was probably just my tongue still stained with alcohol. Macy had warned me not to drink anything I wasn't supposed to, and I didn't. For most of the night. After about four shots my head had started to pound from the vodka, so I backed off to water. The bartender glared at me as I sat there, my head in my hands, having yet to pay him.

"Hey." Macy jumped onto the stool next to me, making me jump. My head throbbed painfully and I groaned, provoking an accusing glare from her. "You had a drink, didn't you?"

"Yeah." I whispered, my head pounding to the beat of the loud music. Macy gave an exasperated sigh and slapped down some money on the counter. Yanking me off my stool, she grabbed my arm and began to drag me through the crowd of people.

"I needed some air anyways." She muttered, leading me outside to the ally way behind the club. Immediately, my stomach lurched sending me to the corner behind the dumpster.

"Jesus, Rory." She sighed, holding back my hair as my lunch came back up. I gave a weak moan as an answer once I was done, gulping in fresh air. A clicking noise came from above my head and the smell of cigarette smoke almost made me throw up again. Macy put a lighter back in her pocket as she took a drag on the cigarette.

"You started again?" I asked, wrinkling my nose at the smoke. Macy shrugged casually as an answer and offered her hand to help me up.

What happened next changed my life forever.

I took her hand and immediately something happened. My body felt like somebody had set it on fire, starting from my hand. Time slowed down as I watch my hand grow longer, my skin paler. My lungs felt blocked and the taste of smoke filled my mouth. I heard myself scream as the fire moved inside me, igniting everything.

Finally, the fire consumed my head, and pain obliterated any sense of who I was that I had left. Images began flashing in front of my eyes, all of which had to do with Macy. One second she was five and playing with a doll, then she was eleven and a bald man sitting in a wheelchair was talking with her about school. She was twelve and she was watching her dad walk out on her and her mom. And then she was seventeen and talking with the man in the wheelchair, a picture of me on the desk in between them.

The world began to come back into focus as the image faded. I was lying face down on the street, with my hair in front of my face. I could hear Macy above me talking into her cell phone.

"Yes, my friend just collapsed; she's not breathing. The ally behind the club Urge." She said her voice sharp. And then I heard Macy saying something else at the same time:

_Professor? It's happened. I'm taking her to the hospital. I'll meet you there. _Her voice sounded like one of those sleepy daydreams you get in History class. But it was in my head, like I could hear her thoughts.

_Who's the Professor? _I thought. Macy's voice, both in my head and above me, disappeared and her hand was suddenly on my back.

"Rory?" She called. "Rory, c'mon, you gotta get on your side." I moaned in slight protest, but rolled over. The hair obscuring my face fell away and I saw Macy draw back, her eyes wide with shock.

_Oh shit._ The fuzzy Macy-voice in my head said. _Professor, she's a higher class than I thought_.

"Macy?"

"Yeah, Rory?" Macy's voice cracked as she said my name.

"How come you keep talking, but your lips don't move?" I asked softly. Her eyes grew wider and I noticed the dumpster behind her. I could see the reflection in the metal and I felt my face scrunch up in confusion. I could see the back of Macy's figure because she was sitting up, but also I could see her lying down where I should've been. My eyes traveled back and forth between Macy's surprised face and the dumpster.

"Hey, Mace. I'm you." I mumbled before blacking out.


	2. Chapter 2

**So, first off, I'd really like to thank everyone who took time to review the first chapter. It really means a lot that you would all do that, and it kinda made my day when I saw those reviews. Again thank you.**

**OK so, second chapter! This is probably gunna be all I'll update until the end of June. I'm going on a long camping trip and this is all I have that's pre-written. It's possible I may get chapter three out, but it's not very likely.**

**Again thank you for reading, and please don't feel shy to review. **

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><p>My brain woke up before my body did. I could hear people talking in what seemed to be the hallway and a machine beeping somewhere close, but my eyes wouldn't open to check. I heard a door opened and shut, and footsteps across the floor near me. Then it was silent as the people moved around.<p>

"Tell me again, Macy. How did it happen?"

A man's voice, somewhere to my left, was speaking in low tones, like I was sleeping and he was afraid to wake me up.

"She had a drink so I took her outside, where she threw up in the ally." My best friend said above me. Her voice was fuzzy, like before, but in the sense that my ears weren't quite working correctly. "After she was done I gave her my hand to pull her up. She grabbed my hand and she got this really weird look on her face, like something had possessed her. She collapsed and started screaming and thrashing around. After maybe a minute she stopped and that's when I called you, and pushed her on her side. And then her hair fell away from her face and…. she was me."

"Did she say anything?" The man asked.

"She asked -" Macy broke off, as if she couldn't get the words out. She took a second to swallow then started again, "She asked why I was talking, but my mouth wasn't moving."

"Interesting." The man said softly.

"Professor, what does that mean?" Macy asked, dropping her voice. "Did she just transform into my physical form, like Mystique? Or is she -"

"Macy," The man interrupted, "why don't you just ask her yourself. I believe she's awake now."

Someone's hand was suddenly on my arm and someone's presence came closer to mine.

"Rory?" Macy called softly. "Rory, can you hear me?"

I gave a soft moan in reply, but still couldn't manage to open my eyes. My eyelids felt like they had been glued together.

"Should I try -?"

"Wait just a second, Macy." The man interrupted again. "Let me try first."

And suddenly, something was in my head. It wasn't unpleasant or anything, just a slight tickling in my brain. Still, it was weird. The tickling moved across my head slowly as if searching for something. Finally, it stopped moving and focused on just one part of my brain.

The man gave an interested hum and the tickling became more intense, almost to the point of poking. I wished that it would go away and suddenly the tickling disappeared. My body suddenly felt more drained and yet I felt great, like someone had just injected me with a shot of adrenaline.

"Very interesting." The man said.

"What?" Macy piped up, her voice a bit worried.

"She threw me out." The man explained. "I was searching her mind for any trace of her mutant power and I just about had it when she threw me out."

"But…." Macy whispered, "she's not a telepath. I would have found that out sooner."

I was getting annoyed with the conversation and how they carried on even though I was right there. And besides, what was she talking about, me being a telepath? Wouldn't that mean I could hear thoughts?

That's when I got an idea. If Macy and the man beside me could find out if I was telepathic then maybe…

_I'm not telepathic, Mace. _I thought hard, hoping someone would pick up.

"Well that's great to know." Macy muttered sarcastically.

_Glad to know you are though._ I replied.

"Professor -"

"I know, Macy, I heard." The man said, brushing away her comment. "Rory, can I ask you a few questions?"

_Only if I can ask some first. _I answered him. Suddenly, there was an image of a bald man's head nodding in my mind. I twitched a bit at the intrusion of my mind but ignored it since the tickling had left.

_Why am I in the hospital? _I asked, basing my question off of the feeling of an I.V. in my arm and the memory of Macy conversation on the phone last night.

"You had an…. accident." Macy answered, her voice getting the flat tone it always did when she was lying.

_An accident. _I repeated skeptically, but let it go._ Ok then. So who are you? _I directed at the man.

"I am Professor Charles Xavier." The man answered. "I run a school in upstate New York for gifted students like Macy and yourself."

_Macy goes to my high school, not some gifted boarding school. _I pointed out. _And what do you mean, "gifted"? Gifted how_

"I think you know how I mean gifted."

I paused for a moment as I thought over what had happened the night before. How I could hear Macy's thoughts last night after I touched her hand. How I saw what must have been several of Macy's strongest memories and how I saw _two_ Macys last night in the reflection of the dumpsters. How I was talking with them now.

_You think I'm a mutant. _I stated, frowning a bit.

"Precisely." The Professor said.

And suddenly my mental voice was laughing.

_No way._ I insisted. _I'm not a mutant. Don't you guys find out your "powers" at like thirteen? I just turned eighteen. And besides, mutants aren't real._

"Then how do you explain the fact that we can hear you Rory?" Macy asked, her tone offended.

We were all silent as I argued with this new idea. Me: a mutant? I couldn't be. There was no way. But everything seemed to be pointing in the same direction.

_But I just turned eighteen! _I insisted

"Some mutants discover their abilities later in their life." Said the Professor. "For instance, I knew one mutant who didn't discover his until he was almost twenty-one. Of course, his was telepathy like Macy and me. He just thought he was hearing things."

_That still doesn't explain me._

"Maybe a survival instinct?" Macy suggested. "Like you mentioned in class the other day, Professor? About the body adapting to survive?"

"Yes, I suppose it's possible. If you were feeling any sort of threat towards mutants, Rory, your body might have conserved your power until it decided you could be safe."

And suddenly I thought of my parents. I thought of my dad, a conservative in every way, and how he would rant on and on about how those "mutant freaks" – he called them – were taking over our government and taking control of "innocent people" to get what they wanted. I thought of my mother, always nodding along placidly, agreeing with everything she said. She never said much, but I knew she hated the idea of mutants as much, or even maybe more, than my father did.

_I can't be a mutant. _I said, trying to keep the fear out of my voice. _My parents….. they'd kill me if they ever found out. _

I felt Macy squeeze my hand and she sent a mental image her of giving me a reassuring smile. I didn't realize I was shaking until she let go of my hand.

"You remember that fight we had in February?" She asked softly. "The one about mutants?"

_Yeah. _I sighed. _I get it now though._

It had started off of one of my dad's rants after the news. Something about mind-controlling mutants and how they should all be shot. After he'd finished and left, Macy was really quiet till I pestered her enough to tell me.

"He's wrong." She'd said simply. "They're not trying to control anyone. They're just people."

"It's just Dad." I had answered, shrugging it off. "He does that all the time."

That's when Macy had started to get very defensive about the whole thing and started yelling about all the people who thought like him and how none of them understood. How it was the same thing as being anti-Semitic. But when I tried to explain that none of it was real, she stormed out, saying she had something urgent to take care of, but not before saying she hoped that if any of the mutants did get shot, Dad would too. We didn't speak for a whole month after that, and neither of us ever brought it up again.

"Rory,"the Professor began, "how would you like to attend my school?"

_ What? _I asked, projecting a skeptical look to him. The idea was insane. My parents would never allow me to go to a school for "gifted students", much less pay for it. And something told me a private, non-government funded school would be very expensive. There was no way I'd ever be able to get enough money to be able to pay for even a semester at this point, even with the job at the nice restaurant I worked at.

"You won't have to pay anything." He said, reading my thoughts. "My school is more of a safe home for people like us; a place where any mutant may come and receive a warm bed and an education by simply being a good citizen to the world in return."

"It's awesome there, Rory." Macy jumped in. "There are classes like regular school, but you can take whatever you want if you have time and enough patience. And there are teachers there who help you control and understand your powers. The dorms are nice, and the food's great. And the best thing," she said, grabbing my hand again, "no one makes fun of you for being a mutant."

I flinched at the word 'mutant' but instantly sent an apologetic look to Macy.

_I'm not quite used to that yet. _I said softly. She squeezed my hand in understanding, as the Professor cleared his throat.

"Macy, could you give us a moment?" He asked.

"Sure, Professor." She squeezed my hand again, before getting up and leaving the room, closing the door behind her.

"Now," The Professor started, "I'd like to ask you something about your ability, Rory."

_Fire away. _I answered, a little cautious.

"When you _shifted_, as we might say, into Macy did you simply just change your physical appearance?"

I thought about it carefully, trying to recall everything that happened when I took Macy's hand in that ally way. And suddenly, the burning sensation returned, flooding over me before I could stop it. But it wasn't as painful this time. It was as if I had used a new muscle last night that I didn't know I had, but it had repaired itself, a little stronger now.

Again, my lungs clogged with cigarette smoke and my mind filled with memories of Macy's life. I could feel my hair grow longer this time; my body adjusting to the differences between hers and mine.

And then I found I could open my eyes again.


	3. Chapter 3

**Yey, Chapter 3! Two things before we get started though:**

**First, thank you to everyone who put this on their favorite story lists, story alerts, reviewed, or even bothered to read this little story of mine. I'm unbelievably grateful to each and everyone of you. **

**Second, Ta-da! One day back from Philmont and there's a new chapter. I call that an accomplishment! Granted, I was supposed to be doing my summer reading instead of writing, but I just wanted to get this done. Hopefully, I'll have Chapter 4 up sometime over the weekend, but again no promises. **

**Once again: thank you for reading, please review (it makes me do a happy dance), and please enjoy :]**

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><p>I blinked at the sun filtering through the windows and the bright lights above me. I looked around the room, taking in the hospital sights: the nurses moving about in the outside hallway, the machine next to my bed that measured my heart-rate, blood pressure and whatever other things that my body needed to keep constant. And then I saw the mirror through the open door to the bathroom.<p>

Again, Macy was sitting where I was supposed to be, her wide hazel eyes staring back in wonder at me. Hesitantly, I raised my hand to my face and Macy mimicked my move.

"Interesting." Mused the Professor, drawing my attention back to him. He was bald, like I'd seen in my head, and wearing a suit that looked like he should be in a court room instead of in a hospital room sitting next to me. He would have been tall, I guessed, if it weren't for the wheelchair he was in. But the chair didn't seem to bother him, like with other people I'd seen. The Professor seemed to have this air about him that the chair was where he was always meant to be, even though he probably used to walk on his own.

"I really am a mutant." I said in wonder, staring at my hands. Except my voice didn't sound like my voice. It was Macy's, just like everything else about me.

"Rory, can you read minds?" The Professor asked, once again drawing my attention away from my physical appearance.

"Like, tell what someone's thinking?" I asked, suddenly excited.

He nodded in confirmation. "Try on Macy." He suggested. "Don't think _to_ her, though." He instructed. "Simply reach out with your mind. Like you're reaching out to touch a swimming pool, but don't disturb the water."

I sat back and closed my eyes, trying to do as the Professor had said. The reaching out part was easy, I discovered. It was closing in on a single mind that was hard. I thought of a giant radar with me at the center and suddenly I was hearing all sorts of different thoughts at once. Nurses and doctors thinking about patients and gossip around the hospital they had heard. There was an old lady in the room next door praying for her grandson to pull through from his surgery and across the hall a man was thinking of stuff to do with his new born daughter. On the floor upstairs a girl was crying over the news that she would never walk again and on the ground floor a mother was escorting her two children to see their dad in chemotherapy somewhere up on the fifth floor.

Finally, I managed to focus on the girl standing outside my door. She was preoccupied with a question she wanted to ask me, and at the same time thinking of Sam, her boyfriend who was two years older than her and had just gone off to join the army. And then she picked me up. I could tell she had felt it, the tickling in her brain, and she gently pushed me out.

_Sorry Ror. _She sighed, and blocked me out all together.

With a rush, I closed off my own mind, and opened my eyes. I was sweating and the hurried beeping from the machine next to me made me realize I was panting.

"So?" The Professor asked expectantly, raising his eyebrows at me.

"I did it." I gasped, grinning like an idiot. "She was thinking about her boyfriend."

"Well done." He said, giving me a small smile. "So, that answers a few questions, I suppose."

The door flew open then, and Macy stood in the doorway, an anxious look on her face.

"A nurse is coming -" She broke off as her eyes settled on me, growing wide with disbelief.

"Rory," The Professor spoke, his tone urgent, "you need to change back."

"But, I don't – I've never -" I stammered, suddenly feeling very panicked since I couldn't remember how to revert back to my normal self.

"Just relax," he commanded, "and think of you."

Hurriedly, I conjured up a picture of me making faces at myself in the mirror yesterday morning and focused on it. My mousey brown hair, speckled blue-green eyes, and slightly freckled face came into sharp, clear focus as I felt myself rummaging in my mind for my DNA. The burning returned again, sweeping over me faster than before and suddenly, I was myself again.

I looked at Macy, her jaw hanging open, and realized I must have done that in less than five seconds, because right then a nurse walked in. And boy, she did _not_ look happy.

"What happened in here?" She demanded, running a critical eye over Macy and then me, as I lay sweating and panting again in the bed.

"She woke up and panicked, Miss." The Professor lied calmly. "She couldn't remember what had happened or how she got here."

The nurse turned her narrowed gaze onto him, trying to detect a lie in his story.

"You're the girl's father, I presume?" She sniffed, placing her hands on her hips.

"Oh no." He chuckled, wheeling out in front of her. "I'm her uncle. Her father was busy in surgery so he asked me to check on her for him. This is my daughter, Macy." He gestured to Macy, who politely nodded her head.

The nurse gave both of them another careful look-over before giving a disapproving sniff and leaving the room.

I sat back against my bed, trying to control my breathing. Macy was still staring at me but out of the corner of her eye now. The Professor eyed me too, leaning forward in his chair, his mouth pressed against his hand.

I had the feeling like they were studying me. As if I was a new species of animal that needed to be studied to prevent any danger to anyone else. Macy, it seemed, had already jumped to the conclusion that I was a wild, dangerous beast that couldn't be controlled and had to be watched at all times. And to be honest, I felt like that too. Like I needed someone with me at all times to make sure I didn't spontaneously transform into a different person.

The Professor, as far as I could tell, was reserving judgment on me. I could tell he was running everything he knew about me and my "ability" through his head. But it wasn't enough. There wasn't enough data for him to make a proper diagnosis about my well-being and he wouldn't make one until he had every little piece of information. At least, he seemed like the kind of man that would do that.

"So that's it?" I asked, breaking the silence. "I'm a freak who can look like other people?"

"Not exactly my choice of words," The Professor mused, "but yes."

"Is that - " I broke off looking for the right word, "special? In your world at least? Cause it definitely is top level weird in mine."

"Shape shifting is pretty normal, Ror." Macy said, still looking at me like I might bite her hand if she got too close. "There's a good, would you say, at least a hundred kids at the school, Professor?"

"At least." He answered, giving a confirming nod. "But most of them can only transform into certain things. What normal people would call "demons" most likely."

I felt the blood drain from my cheeks as the thought of me covered in scales with horns popped into my head.

"That won't happen to me will it?" I asked, trying not to think of my lizard-self.

"With the little I've learned about your powers, I would guess not." The Professor said with a smile. "You're probably one of two shape shifters I've met that actually has a choice on what form you take."

"Two?" I asked, raising my eyebrows and looking back and forth between the Professor and Macy. "Then who's the other one?"

"Mystique." Macy scowled. From the look on her face my guess was if that our life was an old western movie the sky would rumble with distant thunder and Macy would spit on the floor soon.

"Is she not very well liked?" I asked carefully, glancing over to the Professor.

"Not especially, no." He said. Macy opened her mouth to say more, but was quickly silenced by a look from the Professor. She settled herself for a dark look towards the floor and began grumbling incoherently.

"Is she normal?" I asked, the words tumbling out of my mouth. "Like normal looking most of the time?"

Macy sneered and laughed bitterly. "Not unless you call being covered in blue skin and having hair that looks like fire normal." Macy kept laughing bitterly until she looked up from the floor at me. Immediately her expression softened. "Sorry." She mumbled.

"Mystique can't copy people's powers, though." The Professor chimed in, still looking over at me like I was some neat science experiment. "And while she's limited to simply taking the same appearance as others you, it would seem, are not."

I stared down at my hands remembering how they changed. How I changed. And suddenly I really hoped I wasn't going to go blue. Or any other color for that matter. I liked being me. I liked having my own thoughts, not Macy's which were floating around in my head like they were at the pool.

I then realized I knew _everything_ about my best friend. Even things she had never told me. Like how she had been found by the Professor. And how she had made out with Freddy McAby, who happened to be my boyfriend at the time, behind the bleachers freshman year. And how she was still a little upset about loosing her teddy bear when she was eight.

Macy and I exchanged glances as I asked, _Mr. Snuffles?_

"Professor?" Macy asked, not taking her eyes off me. "Could Rory and I have a word alone, please?"

"Certainly." The Professor's wheelchair moved on it's own to the door. "Oh, just a warning: I'm going to ask if they could release Rory soon. I believe we have much to discuss, and I'd rather do it somewhere where Rory is more comfortable."

"Yes sir." Macy said, nodding in agreement. The Professor gave one last smile at me before he telepathically shut the door behind him.

"Mr. Snuffles?" I asked again, sniggering a little. Macy frowned at me and sat back down in the chair next to my bed.

"Mr. Snuffles was a gift from a friend of my mom's that I got when I was three." She explained, eyeing me coolly. "I've never told anyone about him. Care to explain how you suddenly know about my bear?"

I shrugged and touched the side of my head with my finger. "I've got all these memories from your life in here. Like, I touched your hand and suddenly – _poof_ – I'm you. Physically _and_ mentally, which is kinda weird in my opinion."

Macy's frown deepened as she thought over what I had just said. She pinched the bridge of her nose in concentration and closed her eyes.

"Ok," she sighed, "I wanna set something straight here. Even though we don't know exactly what your power is and how it works, I want you to promise me something."

She looked right at me, her face dead serious as she spoke. I nodded hurriedly, showing her I would, like we had lots of times before this.

"Promise me," Macy said slowly, "that you won't use my memories or powers ever."

"Ever?"

"Ever." She repeated firmly. Now it was my turn to frown.

"But how can I figure out what I can do if I can't use your powers?" I asked, trying not to whine.

"I'm sure it's not limited to me, Ror." She assured me. "We'll find out somehow. Just promise me?"

I sighed in defeat and nodded. I mentally tucked Macy's life into the back of my mind and let my own memories fill up the empty space again.

"So now what?" I asked, laying back again and looking up at the ceiling.

"Now," the Professor's voice floated through my thoughts, "we go talk to your parents."


	4. Chapter 4

**So, I'm a completely terrible person. I promised you guys an update at the beginning of the month and look, it's the last week of July. :/ I've been crazy busy with college visits and band camp. I had most of this chapter typed up, but I managed to loose my flashdrive for a week and I keep this story on there. I finally found it today and got it all done! I'm really very sorry.**

**On a happier note, here's chapter four! Yey! I promise things will start moving soon; I've got big plans for Rory and crew. The problem is I have two more weeks of band camp, summer reading, and then school starts. So I'll do my best. It really helps when you review though, cause then I remember I have people that want to read this and it gets me motivated to work on it. :]**

**Thank you for being so patient and thank you to everyone that's read so far. Please enjoy, and please review! **

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><p>"Everything's going to be ok, Ror."<p>

I nodded, but I didn't really hear her words. We were standing on my front porch and I was staring at the door like an idiot. The lump in my throat had grown significantly larger since we'd left the hospital and my tongue felt like sandpaper. My eyes were glued on the handle, like I expected it to jump out and bite me. My fingers twitched around the jacket I had worn last night to the club, my knuckles white as I clutched it tightly.

"I can't go in there." I whispered, trying to control the panic that was rising up in my chest.

"It'll be ok." Macy said again.

"'_Ok_'?" I squeaked. "'Ok' is when you break your mom's favorite vase on accident running through your house. 'Ok' is when you're learning to drive and you crash your dad's car through the garage door. 'Ok' is _not_ coming home to your anti-mutant parents to tell them you can physically and mentally change into your best friend!"

Macy grimaced, and suddenly, my mind jumped to Teddy Fallers, who came out last year. It hadn't been a surprise; we all knew he was gay. Sure, he played football and took a girl to all of the dances, but still, it was obvious. But apparently, his parents had no idea. When he told them his dad flat out denied him as a son, threw Teddy out, and told him not to come back. They didn't even come to his graduation.

My heart raced at the thought of what _my_ parents would say. I had heard of parents estranging, disowning, and even going so far as to torture their children because they were mutants. My dad probably wouldn't even hesitate to tie me up and try to "bleed" the mutant out of me. Images of me bleeding in the bathtub, or chained to my bed, or tied to a chair filled my head when Macy grabbed my hand.

"It's ok." She said, blocking the thoughts out of my mind. I looked at her, the images flying away like rockets when I thought of something.

_If I can't use your powers Mace, you can't get into my head without me saying so. _I told her mentally. _Deal?_

Immediately, her presence in my head disappeared as she agreed and all the horrible thoughts reappeared.

"Sorry." She said sheepishly. "It's kind of a habit."

"'Habit'?" I asked, my voice cracking a bit. "What do you mean, 'habit'? You've done it before?"

"Rory?" The Professor spoke up from behind me. "Your parents?"

"Right. Sorry, Professor." I pulled myself out of my distraction but not before flashing my best friend a look.

_We'll talk later_. She said with a shrug.

I nodded, took a deep breath, and grabbed the handle. My hand almost slipped off because of how much my hands were sweating. But before I could psyche myself out I pushed open the door and stepped inside.

My house had never seemed so foreign before in my life. Everything looked, felt, and even smelled like someone else's house. My mind temporally forgot where my room even was as I stared wide-eyed down the hall to where I could hear my mom in the kitchen.

"Rory?" She called at the sound of the door opening and shutting. "Is that you?"

"Yeah," I called, my voice breaking off. I swallowed and tried again, "Yeah, Mom. Sorry I forgot to call last night."

My mom walked out into the hallway, looking stereotypically housewife with her apron and wet red rubber gloves. She gave me a stern look as she dried her hands with an old dishtowel.

"What happened last night?" She demanded, her eyebrows scrunching together. "You told me you were going to be home by two."

"I'm sorry, Mom." I tried to keep my voice level. "We went to a party and I just forgot the time."

"So?" Mom placed her hands on her hips, her mouth forming a thin line. She opened her mouth to say more when her eyes flashed to my wrist. She gasped and almost comically framed her face with her hands.

"Rory Autumn Drive!" She gasped, and I flinched at the use of my full name. Parents only ever use your full name when you're really in trouble. "You were in the hospital?"

_Crap. _I thought. I had forgotten to take of the wristband that the hospital had put on me. It was just my luck Mom would see it.

"I fainted." I said, not quite lying. "I, uh, had a bit of an anemia attack."

When I was twelve I was bit by a dog in a back ally as I was walking home from school one day. It was a while till someone found me; I had been too stupid just to go home and had simply stayed put. By that time I'd lost some blood and the doctors found out I was anemic. For a couple years after that I'd faint if I worked too hard or got too excited, until my body finally got everything back to normal. So not quite a lie, but not really the truth either.

"Why didn't somebody call me?" My mother demanded.

"We ran into her dad, Mrs. Drive." Macy jumped in, rescuing me from having to make something else up. "He said he'd let you know."

"Well, he didn't." Mom snapped, attempting to feel my forehead through her gloves. "He must have gone into surgery without even bothering to think of telling me! I swear, that man must think his patients are more important than his family!"

My mother continued to rant as she walked back into the kitchen, grumbling about how my father never paid attention to his "lovely daughter". My heart sank down to somewhere around my stomach as I listened to her talk about me.

"Mrs. Drive?" The Professor called. Mom's head immediately popped back out into the hallway.

"Rory, who's this?" She asked, having been completely oblivious to the man sitting on her doorstep the first time. "You didn't tell me you were bringing home visitors."

"I'm Charles Xavier, Mrs. Drive. Pleased to make your acquaintance." The Professor wheeled right in up to my mom, like they were old friends meeting again after some long time. "I'm Macy's distant uncle. Macy asked me to make sure your daughter got home safely and I just couldn't say no to a lovely girl, such as your daughter."

Macy laughed good-naturedly and I tried to do the same, except it sounded more like a muffled dog barking than it did like a laugh.

"Well, thank you very much, Mr. Xavier." Mom said briskly. "Would you like some coffee?"

"Coffee would be splendid, thank you."

My mother's smile became pained as the Professor accepted her invitation and the two of them traveled into the kitchen.

"I'm going to go change, Mom." I called, before grabbing Macy's hand and bounding up the stairs to my room. More of Macy's memories flooded my brain and I dropped her hand. We stayed silent until my door was shut with a resounding _click_.

"They're going to kill me." I whimpered, flopping down on my bed.

"They're not going to kill you." Macy answered automatically, kicking a dirty shirt into the hamper in the corner.

I laughed bitterly. "Right." Sarcasm was my default when things got stressed. "And I suppose after I tell them, Mom will bake me cookies and Dad will make a shrine of me and pray to it everyday I'm gone."

Macy sighed and threw my duffle bag at me, grabbing my backpack herself.

"Just pack." She said. "We don't know how long we can stay afterwards."

I nodded and sat up. I changed into clothes that didn't smell like vomit and hospital before grabbing stuff and shoving it into the duffle bag. I tried not to think of the fact that this was probably the last time I'd see my room. Shaking my head to try and clear my thoughts, I starting sorting through the things on my desk. Laptop? Take. Schoolbooks? Didn't need those anymore. Pictures?

"Rory? You ok?" Macy asked, her hand on my shoulder.

I was staring at a picture in my hand of my family and me. We had taken it earlier that summer during a family reunion. Mom had insisted that we get a shot of just the three of us, saying we didn't have any past the summer I turned ten. Dad had growled about how unnecessary it was and how the photographer didn't want to be there any longer than he had to and I had whined about my hair and how pale I looked. But we'd all sat down on the grass and laughed at the joke someone had told right before the picture was taken. We looked happy together, like a family should, I guessed. And I was about to shatter it all.

"Yeah," I said, my voice breaking as I tried not to cry. "Five-by-five."

* * *

><p>"Ah, there you are! I was just explaining to your mother, Rory, about my school."<p>

The Professor had a small smile on his face as we walked into the living room, like he was about to tell us some secret. He had strategically positioned himself so he had a view of the front door and the door to the garage and could still talk with my mother. I guessed he picked that spot so when my father walked in the first person he'd see would be the Professor, something very brave and, in my opinion, very stupid. Dad didn't like unannounced visitors.

"Yes, it sounds wonderful." My mother said absently, stirring her coffee. "Although, it does sound rather expensive."

"Oh not at all." The Professor assured her, taking a sip from his mug. "I've taken a look at Rory's grades and we would be more than willing to pay for all of your daughter's tuition."

My mother choked on her drink, and took a moment to cough into her apron. I blinked in surprise and smiled, although it ended up as more of a grimace.

"I'm sorry," she said, "did you say _all _of Rory's tuition."

"I'm home!"

I flinched and felt my fingernails digging into my palms at the sound of my father's voice. We could hear the noises he was making as he settled in, his keys jingling and the closet door closing with a _thud_. He was whistling. My father rarely whistled. Something good must have happened at work.

Suddenly, the room started spinning slightly and my knees buckled. I sank into a chair away from my mother and dug my fingernails in harder against my palms. This was it. This was the moment I was going to shatter everything _normal_ about my family's life. And they didn't even know it.

"Julie!" My father called from the hallway. "Julie, is Rory home? I saw her name at the hospital." My stomach twisted into a ball, anticipating his interrogation, but he didn't wait for an answer. "Dr. Samuels called me into his office today and you'll never guess what he said! He said he was going to give me a raise! A raise, Julie! Now you can get rid of that piece of shit mini-van and get you a _real _car! Something a doctor's wife should be seen driving in! Maybe some kinda sports –"

Dad's happy rant broke off as he stepped into the living room and caught sight of the four of us. The Professor was still smiling his small smile and raised his eyebrows slightly, almost like he was taunting my father. My father narrowed his eyes at the man in the wheel chair, confusion written all over his face.

"Julie," he said slowly, not taking his eyes of the Professor, "who's this?"

"Charles Xavier; Macy's uncle." The Professor introduced himself, holding his hand out for my father to shake. My father took it uncertainly.

"Mr. Xavier drove Rory home from the hospital, John." Mom said coolly. "You were too busy with your surgery."

"What?" Dad asked, his glare jumping to me. "You were in the hospital, Rory? I thought you just popped in for a visit"

"Just fainted, Dad." I squeaked, avoiding his eyes. "No big deal."

"Well, thank you Xavier." My father said, putting on his business voice. "Can I do anything for you?"

"Oh no, that won't be necessary." The Professor assured, taking a sip from his tea. "Actually, I was just talking to your wife about Rory's education."

"Rory is receiving a perfectly acceptable education." My father snapped, sitting down next to my mother.

"I'm sure she is." The Professor backtracked. "I was simply telling Mrs. Drive about my school. You see, Mr. Drive, I run a school for very gifted children and it has come to my attention that Rory would fit in very well at my school."

"And what makes you say that?"

"Macy is one of my students that is doing a 'study abroad' program, if you will. She's told me all about your daughter and her… _talents_."

I swallowed nervously at the mention of my 'talents'. My dad simply snorted in disbelief.

"Rory doesn't need to go to some 'special' school." He said coolly. "She's getting good grades, has good friends, and is even the captain of both of the soccer teams she's on. She doesn't need to go to some school to know she's better than others. It's already clear right where she is."

"I understand." The Professor nodded. "I simply think she would excel at the Institute. Even more so than at her current school."

"Look," My father said sharply, "I'm not paying for Rory to get a stamp on her diploma that says she went to a private school when she can get the same education at the public high school."

"He's offered to pay for her tuition, John." My mother said, but I could tell my father wasn't listening.

"Rory is staying in high school, living the life that is laid out for all the other teenagers her age. A normal education in a normal town with her normal –"

"I'm a mutant!" I blurted out, unable to take it anymore.

The room went deathly silent. Nothing moved an inch and no one moved a muscle. It was if time had stopped and I was the only one still moving. My father was gaping at me and my mother had her hands over her mouth in shocked surprise. The Professor's eyebrows were up and Macy had a frozen look of pity on her face.

Blood roared in my ears and my heart pounded so hard in my chest I was sure it would escape from between my lungs. I could feel sweat running down between my shoulder blades and felt the blood from where my nails had broke the skin on my palms. I couldn't breathe; the terror was so great. All I could think of was how my life was over with my parents.

"You what?" My father said, his voice coming from far away.

"I'm – I'm a mutant." I whispered, my eyes on my knees.

"No. No, no, sweetie, no." My mother moaned softly. I heard my father get up from the couch.

"What kind of sick lies did you put into my daughter's head!" He roared, marching over to the Professor.

"Dad, no!" I cried, the roaring in my ears dying down a bit. I stood up to block the Professor, to plead with my father.

Suddenly, I felt bare hands on my face. My mother was standing in front of me, clutching my face in her hands. My skin started to burn and I let out a little squeak and felt my mother's memories replace my own. I saw everything she'd ever done and felt, and immediately felt my body change into hers. Quickly, I pulled up the image of me and felt myself change back, but it was too late. They had already seen.

I looked up at my parents from where I had fallen on to the floor. They looked down at me like I was some rabid creature. My dad was bristling with fury and hatred while my mother silently wept that her daughter was no longer the perfect child she thought I could be.

"Get out." My father said softly. "Get out of my house and don't even think of coming back ever again."

The roaring in my ears started up again, this time with a sharp pain in my chest. It was like someone had opened up a hole and replaced my heart with it.

"Come on, Ror."

Macy picked me up and helped me to the door, grabbing my bag on the way out. The Professor was already in the car as I limply sat down in the backseat. I could see my parents through the living room window from the car. They were watching us go, both of them crying.

"I love you." I whispered as we pulled away and started to cry.


	5. Chapter 5

**So to start off, I'm really sorry with how long this has taken me to get this chapter out. But like I explained with "Rhythms" I'm super crazy busy (For those of you who don't know, I've got a Hunger Games story in the works at well. Go check it out). Marching band just kicked its self up a notch since we're getting into competition time and we've been in school for almost seven weeks which means project time! Ugh. **

**I've got another page or so written of this but this seemed like the best stopping point for this chapter. Otherwise it'd be super long. Which I suppose wouldn't be too terribly bad, but I wouldn't want to bore you guys to death. **

**A quick note though. I'm not on the movie time lines ok? There's nothing about this stupid "Mutant cure" in this story. I'm sorry but that's just dumb out for a plot. Also some of the characters from the movies may be kinda different. I'm a comic book junkie, or at least was. Too many of these X-men comics to keep up (I think they've got like 7 different series out right now. Crazy.) So for instance, none of this Rogue is a wuss business. No, Rogue's a badass, just maybe not the most likable person ever. **

**So, on that note, thank you for reading. Please don't forget to review and/or add me to your favorite lists. You make me dance with those little notices I get. Once again, thanks and please enjoy!**

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><p>"Holy…"<p>

"Yeah, we get that a lot here."

My jaw hung open as I stood in front of the car, my bag at my feet. Macy had told me it'd be big but I never imagined _this_. The place had actual stone walls and gargoyles for cryin' out loud!

"Quit gapping and go inside. It's just a house." Macy laughed, helping the Professor out of the car.

_Just_ a house? The building was like a freaking castle compared to any house I'd ever lived in. The main wing itself could have fit three of the house I lived in with my parents.

I felt the hole in my chest open up again at the thought of my parents. Sure, I'd known that they weren't going to respond well, but still. It was every kid's worse nightmare. Getting thrown out of their own house by their parents wasn't exactly a picnic. My stomach tied its self into knots whenever I thought of that night; the look on my dad's face and the way my mother had made that noise like she was choking on something bad.

I hadn't been very social on the way up to the school, thanks to my thoughts. Luckily, Macy could tell I didn't really want to talk, so she just kept up a steady chatter of useless things. I had a feeling she and the Professor were having a mental conversation with each other about me, but I didn't care. I was too busy wallowing in my misery.

"Hello-o-o? Rory, anybody home in there?"

"What?" I blinked as she waved her hand in front of my face, drawing me out of my thoughts.

"I asked if you wanted to see your room." Macy sighed, rolling her eyes at me. "But you were off in 'Rorysville'."

I blushed, shrugged on my backpack, and mumbled an apology. She smiled at me, teasing me and pulled at my sleeve, tugging me up the stairs.

"Come on, I promise it's not that bad." She said. "Just… think of it as going of to college. Only a year earlier!"

She was right. This was a whole new life for me and I could make it however I wanted. And I really didn't want to be the sulky new girl in school. So I tried to smile and focused on not falling up the stairs, determined not to think of my parents anymore. Everything was going to be great, I just knew it.

"LOOK OUT!" Somebody yelled from above us.

Macy immediately dove off to the side, but me being the idiot new girl, I looked up. Something flew out of a window a couple stories up and plummeted straight down. For some reason, the thought to move out of the way didn't occur to me until - _Splat!_

"Oh my god." Macy breathed, before she faced the now open window. "Jack Sanchez, you jerk! Look what you did!"

I was covered all the way to the bottom of my shoes in some transparent green slime that I'm sure made me look like a big piece of snot. Trying to hold back a girly scream of disgust I attempted to peel it off, but stopped as soon as I felt it.

My body grew and my mind raced with Jack Sanchez's memories as I fought to stay upright. It was quicker this time, but I found myself out of breath. I stared at my hands, now rough and calloused, and thought to myself that this kid had horrible eyesight since I couldn't see my shoes.

"Jesus, Ror! Change back! Before they get down here." Macy exclaimed, waving for me to get on with it. Quickly I changed myself back, but Jack's thoughts still ran around my head.

"Macy! God, Macy I'm so sorry."

Jack Sanchez came racing out of the door, skidding to a stop in front of the two of us. He hopped from one foot to the other, his green eyes bouncing between Macy and me.

"Jack what the hell were you doing?" Macy growled at him, smacking him over the head.

"I'm sorry Mace!" He winced, ducking his head. "It wasn't my fault!"

"It wasn't your fault?" Macy's growl made Jack flinch again. "It wasn't your fault that _your_ disgusting _goo_, which only comes from _your body_, came flying out of _your _room?"

"Pete ducked!" Jack tried to defend himself, pointing back at the boy standing behind him.

Holy crap, he was huge. Taller than most of the guys on my high school's basketball team, he literally looked down at us. And he looked like one of those drawings of the Greek Gods or something with his muscles that pro-football players would be jealous of.

"Of course Peter ducked, you moron!" Macy sighed rolling her eyes. "Why the hell would anybody want be hit with your disgusting slime gunk?"

They started bickering, leaving me and Peter standing awkwardly on the stairs. Our eyes met briefly and I tried to smile, but then remembered I was still covered in slime, and looked away quickly. I could feel it start to ooze into my socks and down my shirt. Definitely not something I wanted to accessorize with on the first day.

"Hey, uh, Jack right?"

Jack's head swiveled around to look at me. I'm sure I looked pretty pathetic, standing there dripping in goo. His impish grin turned into a very apologetic one as he looked at me.

"Aw, crap." He muttered to himself, running his hand through his dark hair. "New girl right?"

I could almost hear Macy's eyes rolling in her head. "No shit, Sherlock. This is Rory, she just discovered her abilities."

"Sorry, sorry." Jack held up his hands in defense. "Um, you're not going to like this Rory."

My eyebrows shot up with some significant effort. The slime was hardening slightly.

"Try me." I said dryly.

"Uh, well," he stammered, not meeting my eyes and biting his lip, "you're kinda stuck with it for another hour."

My jaw dropped and I felt a huge chill of complete disgust run up my spine.

"You're kidding?" I asked. He so had better be kidding.

"Ah… no." He admitted sheepishly. "The compound is kinda like cement in its chemical structure. It sets pretty easily, and it's not water soluble."

"You mean I'm stuck like this?" My voice rose to a slight squeak in my panic. It was bad enough I had gotten kicked out of my parents' house, but now I had to go around my whole life looking like something a whale coughed up?

"No!" He said hurriedly. "It'll dissolve by itself in about an hour or so. But, you'll be slightly sticky until then."

Great. Just great. I was a giant booger for another fifty minutes or so.

"Peter can you take Rory to the girls' locker rooms?" Macy asked, grabbing my bags. The big guy nodded and turned to lead me up the stairs. My stomach tied its self into nervous knots.

"W-Where are you going?"

Macy blinked at my question before giving me a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry," She called, walking backward, "I'm just going to make sure your roommate isn't there. Be kinda awkward as a first impression if you walked in looking like that, wouldn't it?"

I gave a nervous laugh in agreement, and gave a small wave goodbye. Roommate. There was another thing to worry about. I hoped it wouldn't be somebody too terribly weird or with powers like Jack. Jack's memories showed that he his powers were projectiles. And apparently bad things happened when he sneezed. I gave a little shiver at the metal image.

Peter was waiting for me inside, arms crossed over his massive chest. When he saw me, he simply jerked his head for me to follow and started off down the hall. I padded along behind him, a little shaken by his silence. It was obvious he wasn't very talkative to begin with, but it almost seemed like he didn't like me already. Like my lack of common sense to move out of the way of a flying glob of goo offended him. Course he could just be one of those dumb jocks that never talked that were in every school. I doubted it though.

"- Shifter."

His voice shook me from my wonderings. My cheeks started to burn. What if he was a telepath like Macy? I decided I had to be more careful.

"I'm sorry?" I asked, my voice coming out a lot higher than I had meant.

"Macy said you were a Shifter." He repeated, looking over his shoulder at me.

It wasn't question. There was nothing polite about the inquiry. Blunt and to the point. He didn't like me.

"Uh…" My mind went blank for a second, making me sound like a fool. I felt my blush deepen.

"Yeah." I tried to recover. "Yeah I am."

He raised his eyebrows in slight interest, but didn't say anything else.

"What about you?" I asked, trying to be nonchalant.

"My body changes."

"So you're a Shifter, too?"

"No." He answered curtly, ending the conversation.

I gave a huff of annoyance. He can't even be decent enough to answer one little question. Figures the second person I met at this school would be a complete bum-rag.

We didn't talk for the rest of the way to the locker room, which ended up being on the waaaay far end of the school. Peter sat down outside with a face that said he wasn't going anywhere soon. Fine by me. I wasn't exactly planning on leaving the shower room in a hurry.

Jack was right about the goo not dissolving in water. No matter how hard I scrubbed it wouldn't come off of my skin or out of my hair. Giving and angry sigh I waited for the hour to be up before purging my body of the stuff.

I came out of the locker room almost two hours later, my nasty clothes in my arms. There was no way I was going to put those back on without sending them through the nearest washing machine. Luckily, the locker room had been stocked with sweats of all different sizes so I at least wasn't running through the hall in only a towel. That would have been really embarrassing. I still smelled a bit though. Jack's slime reeked something nasty and I hadn't managed to completely rid my skin of it.

Peter pushed himself off the wall where he had been waiting and gave me a look. I opened my mouth to explain when a chime like an old clock resonated through the school.

"What –"

"Class is done." Peter answered my unfinished question. And with that he took my backpack from my hands and led me down the hall again.

Kids started appearing from every which way filling the halls. The normal chatter of passing period erupted like a bomb as doors opened and closed. Lots of them carried books and backpacks, like they were attending regular high school. But others walked around carrying nothing like they were walking around their own home. Which was technically true, I reminded myself.

Peter seemed to be pretty popular. Several boys waved to him as we passed by, some even inviting him to a pick-up football game on the lawn. Lots of girls said hi too, waving and giggling as he nodded to them. Peter didn't really say much back though. Just simply nodded or a small "hey" as he walked by. I was glad he didn't stop for small talk. I didn't really have a particular urge to be introduced to anybody in my current state.

Left, right, right, through the double doors, up some stairs, left, left. I lost track of where we were after a while I just hoped I'd be able to figure it out eventually. I didn't want to have to depend on the Silent Giant forever to help me find my way around. Finally, though, we ended up in a long hallway full of doors. Several different types of music could be heard through the walls and laughter came from behind a lot of the wooden doors.

"Here." Peter said, stopping in front of one of the doors. There was a piece of yellow paper and a key on a string hanging under a piece of gum. Only Macy did that. She knew it creeped me out.

"Thanks!" I said to Peter, only to find he was already halfway down the hall. He raised his hand in acknowledgement but didn't look back. I scowled at the back of his head as he turned the corner. He could stand to be a little more polite. Shaking my head in annoyance I turned my attention to Macy's note.

_Sorry I had to bail, but you needed a shower and I needed to make sure your room was ok. Your stuff's inside on the bed. The Professor said he wants to see you after lunch. Quit worrying ok?_

Quit worrying. Easy for you to say, Mace. I rolled my eyes affectionately at my mental picture of Macy sticking her tongue out at me, like she did whenever she told me to quit worrying. I was just about to shove her note in my pocket when I noticed something scribbled at the bottom.

_FYI the Professor says you should wear gloves till we find out what you do. And whatever you do, don't touch Rogue._


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey there. So I'm really very sorry about how late this is. My schedule's been crap lately. That and I lost my flash drive for two weeks, which meant no writing. Such is life eh? Really quick, a personal apology to Ieatrevelation. I kinda promised this to you like two weeks ago and here it finally it is. Sorry it took forever.**

** Two things before we get started here: 1) I've no idea what kinda formatting this chapter is going to be in and for that I'm sorry. Doc Manager is being a pain and screwing with me. Maybe it's just today or maybe it's my computer or maybe they changed it and didn't bother to tell me. Either way I'm not terrifically happy about this, but to me, it's showing up in block formation. No paragraphs, no indentions, nothing. I'm trying to fix it with the coding thing but if that doesn't work out I'm sorry. If it does, then congratulations you just wasted about 20-30 seconds reading this. (Sorry!) And 2) I'm sorry this chapter may be confusing to you. (I'm apologizing a lot today.) Please feel free to message me with any questions, but I promise things will be explained in the next chapter. Just bare with me ok?**

** So with that, please enjoy and don't forget to review!**

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>My eyebrows rose up in slight surprise at the last bit. The Professors' request wasn't that strange; he had explained he thought my powers had something to do with touch. It made sense. The only times I had morphed into someone else was after their skin had touched mine. Or at least it had until I got slimed by Jack. But I'd figure that out later.<p><p>

The really surprising thing was Macy' warning not to touch this Rogue person. Were they crazy powerful? Or just really mad all the time? My mind imagined a guy even bigger than Peter with horns and glowing fire for eyes. I shook my head clear of the image. This school might be full of mutants, but I doubted I'd ever find someone who looked like my mental picture. Still, this 'Rogue' sounded dangerous. My grip on my backpack tightened as I took a deep breath and opened the door.

The room looked like a normal dorm room with the beds against the walls and windows wide open. There was more space though, like a normal bedroom, which made me relax. I wasn't quite ready to be crammed in with another person. Shoes were piled up in a corner next to one of the beds that looked like it had been made in a hurry. Clothes were peeking out of a hamper in an attempt to make it look like my roommate had cleaned up.

I dropped my backpack on the bed with the rest of my things and sat down. I still couldn't quite believe what was happening to me. It all seemed so…. fake. Like I was about to wake up from some dream and hear my parents arguing over breakfast downstairs.

The hole in my chest gave a tug and my vision went blurry. I shook my head, clearing my thoughts and wiping my tears away on my sleeves._ Get real_, I told myself forcefully._This isn't summer camp. You can't go home. Quit whining and get over it. Drive's don't cry._

I chanted my father's favorite saying in my head for a few minutes. I'd had it drilled into my head since I was six that crying was for emotionally unstable people who didn't do anything with their lives. Needless to say, my father was a bit crazy, but still, tears weren't an option. So, mashing those thoughts into little tiny pieces, I started unpacking my things.

"So you're the new girl."

I looked up from the shirt I was trying to fold to see a girl in the doorway. Her eyes were narrowed at me slightly, like I was a difficult math problem she had to solve, and her arms were crossed over her chest. Once again, I noticed how she said it as a statement, rather than a question. People at this school really liked assumptions, I guessed.

"No, she's down the hall." I answered, going back to my folding. The girl gave a huff of laughter and closed the door. She came over and leaned over me, her hands on the dresser I was using. I noticed she was wearing gloves. Long white ones that ran all the way up to her elbows.

"Got a name, New Girl?" She asked.

"Rory." I said. "Rory Drive." She looked at me for a moment then nodded, her brown hair bobbing. My eyes followed the two white streaks that framed her face as they bounced up and down.

"Rogue." She said, offering me her hand. I slipped a sock over my hand before shaking it. Her eyes narrowed again, and she drew her hand back, an offended look on her face.

"Sorry." I sighed, before taking off the sock and tossing it an open drawer. "Can't be too careful." Rogue shot me a glare before sitting down on her bed. Crap. Now I've offended my roommate.

"I-I mean, I'm a Shifter." I stammered, trying to backpedal. I held up my hands like I was being held hostage and wiggled my fingers. "I touch people and I change."

"You change." She repeated slowly, her southern accent coming through. I nodded quickly, trying to show I was really harmless. "What do you mean, you change?"

"Like," I hesitated, trying to think of the right words, "if I touch a person I change into them."

Rogue was staring at me like I was her annoying little sister, trying to explain something that I thought was cool but really wasn't. Her eyebrows were slightly raised, as if she was trying not to be rude and look interested.

"So you're like Mystique."

Again with the statements!

"Macy mentioned that." I grimaced, shrugging. "The Professor thinks there's more to it, though."

She attempted to look slightly more interested, but still looked kinda bored.

"Oh?"

"I get their memories." I continued, my face getting hot. It was embarrassing, explaining myself to a complete stranger. "Their feelings, thoughts, and I even start thinking like them kinda. Like, I hear their voice in my head telling me what to do and stuff."

Now Rogue seemed to be actually paying attention. Her eyes were locked onto my hands like she expected them to detach themselves from my arms. There was look in her eye that I couldn't quite place. I shuffled slightly, trying not to feel too awkward.

"Do you absorb powers, then?" She asked, her voice tense.

Puzzled, I shrugged.

"I guess. I don't actually know much about my powers." Rogue just kinda stared at me, like it was my fault for not experimenting more with my powers. With her jaw clenched she reminded me of one of those southern belles you see in movies. The kind that you really want to avoid pissing off.

I glanced down at the floor. I felt like I was being examined again, but this time I felt dirty. Like I was still covered in slime. My eyes started to wander across the room, when I noticed a picture on Rogue's dresser in a nice frame. She was with a boy with shaggy brown hair who was kissing her cheek through a piece of plastic wrap. Rogue was laughing, her face slightly red. They looked really happy.

"This your boyfriend?" I asked, holding up the picture.

Rogue's hand shot out. Quickly, she snatched the picture away from me, but not before her glove brushed my hand.

My brain felt like a rush of wind had hit it. I felt tired and buzzed at the same time. The room spun slightly and I stumbled back onto my bed. A wave of emotions started running around my head, making me really confused; happiness, guilt, denial, sorrow, dislike, and jealousy. Lots of jealousy. And it was all directed at me.

"You ok?" She was just being polite.

"Your glove." I gasped out, trying to shove out the little tiny piece of Rogue that had just invaded my brain. I squeezed my eyes shut, fighting back nausea.

"What about it?" She asked. She sounded offended or maybe amused. I couldn't really tell. I didn't really care either. The little piece of Rogue was fighting with me. And it was taking a lot out of me just to hold her off.

"I don't know." I said, gritting my teeth. "Just… stay over there."

Mental Rogue was sneering at me, all the while poking at my mental walls. Meanwhile, the physical Rogue was actually getting nervous, I could tell. She hesitated before getting up off of her bed, her expression a mix of concern and curiosity.

"Hey, you ok?" She asked, reaching out to touch me.

"No, wait!" I tried to say, flinching away, but it was too late. Her glove came in contact with my bare hand and my mind exploded.

Pain, both physical and mental, ripped through my body as Rogue's glove held my hand. Every emotion she had ever felt tore through me like a torrent of water. Something started draining my energy like a pump, but sent an electric jolt through me, setting my senses on high alert.

"Rory?" Her other hand touched my arm and my brain just about exploded with pain.

_MACY!_ I screamed in my head, hoping she'd hear me. I could hear Rouge trying to talk to me, but her words were muddled as I lost consciousness. 


	7. Chapter 7

**Holy Sweet Force, Batman! I'm so so _sooo_ sorry that it took me this long to update. _Two months! _Oy... I promise I'll be better. Please don't kill me? Just had a couple stressful months with school and travel and school and family stuff. It's just... ugh. I hate stuff. Blargh. **

**On a happier note! I hopefully will have more time to write now! My show is done now so I'll have my afternoons back to do homework. And even though I don't have my study hall, which is where I used to do most of my writings last semester, I should _hopefully_ be able to get something done with the extra hours after school now. Knock on wood. **

**So I know how I said this chapter would answer some questions, but... I lied. Well it might, I'm not sure, but I don't think it does. The next one will I promise. I set this one up to most definitely talk more about Rory's powers. So I guess you could completely skip this one, but I don't know when exactly I'll get the next one up. Please don't kill me?**

**So with that said, here's chapter 7! Please enjoy and don't forget to review and/or add to your favorites/alerts! :]**

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><p><em>Beep!<em> _Beep! Beep!_

I groaned as the sharp sound of my alarm clock rang through my head. I floated on that nice little cloud between conscious and not, enjoying the feeling of just lying there. I could hear Mom moving around in the hall, like she did every morning.

_Beep! Beep! Beep!_

I tried to move my arm to shut the alarm off, but couldn't. Dead arm. Must have slept on it wrong, I thought. Instead, I rolled over…

…And completely fell off the bed.

The impact of the floor plus the sensation of something tearing off of my skin jolted me back to the present. I wasn't in my room. I wasn't even in my house. I was lying on a floor made of linoleum that was _really _cold through my thin tank top and sweat pants. I was sore all over and my head hurt like hell.

"Miss Drive?"

A man's voice above me seemed concerned about why I was on the floor. I didn't even know. I didn't want to open my eyes to check. All I did was groan.

It was a dream. I'd been dreaming about my parents. That I was still living at home. That I still went to my old school. That I wasn't a mutant. What I had thought was my mom in the hall was the man above me. My alarm clock was a machine somewhere in the room. My bed was the medical table above me.

"Miss Drive?" The voice said again, this time a little closer. "How do you feel?"

How did I feel? My body was sore; I couldn't move anything without feeling like I had fifty-pound weights attached to that part of my body. My arms and legs felt like they'd been run over by a steamroller and then re-inflated. My head hurt like _hell_. There was a slight buzzing in my skull, like it was vibrating. My brain felt like it'd been squished, wrung out, and sent through one of those old strainers used for laundry.

How did I feel? To put it bluntly I felt like shit. I just gave another groan in answer.

The man made a humming noise above me and then I was being lifted. My body screamed in protest as the burning of a new person invading my brain started up. To tired to do anything, I turned it off and just went limp. Something soft moved against my arm, kinda like fur. Like a cat wanting attention.

"Kitty?"

"No. Miss Pryde isn't here. Would you like me to have Miss Ward call her down?"

"What?"

The man wasn't making any sense. I hadn't asked for anybody. I just wanted to know if there was a cat nearby.

"Miss Drive?"

I opened my eyes to something very blue and very fuzzy. Confused, I blinked several times, trying to focus my vision.

"AAH!"

I jumped in surprise at what looked like a blue lion standing over me. The motion made me fall back off the table and back onto the cold, hard floor. I hit my head this time on the floor and my vision swam with tears.

"Miss Drive? Are you alright?" Asked the lion-man thing.

"Ow..." I moaned in answer, clutching my head. The blue lion sighed and placed me back up on the table. I tried to move away but pain shot through me. I couldn't move. I was stuck with this lion-man thing on a table that felt uncomfortably like an operating table. Fear washed over me and I felt myself start to shake.

"I'm sorry, that table must be cold." The lion said. He leaned down and grabbed a blanket from somewhere underneath the table. I quit shaking with another layer on and the fear started to ebb away.

"You're blue." I said, stating the obvious. I couldn't help it. It was so startling to see a blue person. Lion. Thing. My head hurt.

"Yes." He responded with a sad smile. "I apologize if I scared you. My mutation tends to do that."

His mutation. I wanted to kick myself for being so stupid. Of course he was a mutant. I was in a freaking school full of them. Macy had even told me some changed their appearances.

"I'm sorry." I mumbled. The lion laughed.

"It's perfectly fine. It's not like you knew I looked like this when you opened your eyes."

But I did, I realized. When he'd picked me up I'd gotten his memories and almost changed. I'd just flipped it off. The thought made me excited. I controlled the change. I was getting better at this.

"Dr. McCoy?" I asked. He gave me a surprised look that I knew his name when he hadn't introduced himself. I felt my face flush. "Where's Macy?"

The question seemed to almost be a trigger. As soon as I said my best friend's name a door opened and in she came. She looked worried, her hazel eyes wide and her fists clenched at her side. Macy caught my eye though and calmed down as I sent her a smile.

_I'm fine, Mace. Don't worry._

She shook her head and pulled up a chair. Dr. McCoy looked up from the table but went back to writing on a clipboard. Once he was done he began reapplying wires to the places I had ripped them off on my first trip to the floor.

"You need to stop doing this." Macy said, shaking her head at me.

"Doing what?" I asked, flinching at the cold glue on my skin.

"Waking up in hospitals. It can't be healthy, can it, Beast?"

Dr. McCoy shot Macy a disapproving glare.

"You know I don't like students using my codename. If you're going to be so informal, use Hank please, _Miss Ward_."

Macy shrugged apologetically, but grinned. "As long as you don't call me by my mom's name. 'Miss Ward' makes me sound like an old lady nurse."

She wrinkled her nose in dislike at the thought.

"Codename?" I asked, confused. I looked up at the fuzzy doctor in questioning.

"Yes, codename." He answered with a tired sigh. "Or as some like to call it, our _mutant_ name. It's how we identify each other in the field."

"The Professor likes to use our names given by our parents though." Macy chimed in. "Says it connects us to the normal people and therefore seem like we're not as scary. Personally, I like codenames. Makes me feel like a superhero, you know?"

As soon as Macy said superhero I got the image of her in spandex, flying around and saving cities from evil aliens or whatever Spiderman did nowadays. The idea was ridiculous.

"We're not superheroes." Dr. McCoy said firmly, sending Macy a pointed look.

"Most of us anyways." Macy nodded. Dr. McCoy just sighed, a frown on his face.

"Most of you?" I asked.

"Most of us." Macy repeated. "The majority of us are students; people struggling to live with their powers. But some of the teachers and actually a couple of the students run out and save the world from time to time."

I stared at her in astonishment. The way she had said that people living here saved the world was like how any normal teenager would talk about a movie they had seen last night. No big deal.

"Superhero's." I repeated, trying to wrap my mind around it. I was living with a superhero team. And not just any superhero team, Hank's memory insisted. The X-men. What the hell was I getting myself into?

"Miss Drive, are you feeling alright?" Dr. McCoy asked again. The machine was beeping next to me, showing my pulse had jumped.

"Five-by-five." I answered, swallowing past the lump that had just formed in my throat. "Just a lot to handle, is all."

The blue doctor nodded in understanding and went back to his clipboard, scribbling things down and checking the machine I was hooked up to. Macy just sat quietly, her eyes half closed like she was in danger of falling asleep. But then she kept looking my way, like she was checking on me, or something. After a minute or so she stretched and yawned, as if she had just woken up from a nap.

"The Professor'll be here in a second, Hank."

"Thank you, Macy, I heard."

The Professor? I felt my eyes go wide and I inwardly groaned. He was coming to check on me? Really, really not necessary at all. I just passed out, right? Probably just from lack of sleep or exhaustion.

The door opened in a _whoosh_, like something from Star Trek, and the Professor wheeled in. His suit had been replaced by a collared shirt and sweater vest, making him look a little less lawyer-like and a little more scholarly in my opinion.

"Good morning, Ms. Drive. Feeling alright?" The Professor greeted, pulling up next to Macy.

"Morning?" I asked. "How long was I out?"

"Almost three days." The Professor said. "Macy found you unconscious in your room. Rogue's report is that you had a seizure of sorts."

"Three days…" I repeated, running my hand over my face.

"I told you," Macy said, poking my arm. "Waking up in hospitals. Not healthy."

I shot her a sarcastic look.

_No shit, Sherlock_.

_Language, young lady. _She shot back with a grin. I rolled my eyes at her and turned back to the Professor.

"Is Rogue ok?" I asked, my mind flashing back to my roommate.

"She's a bit, for lack of a better work, freaked out, but otherwise fine." The Professor said, giving me a small smile. "How are you feeling?"

I shrugged, nodding my head to show I was fine. I couldn't feel any of Rogue left in my mind, so either she just evaporated or my power got control.

"What happened, Ror?" Macy asked, propping her elbows on the table next to my arm. "I just heard you screaming my name in my head like you were dying."

"We were talking." I said, shrugging again. "I picked up a picture and she snatched it back. But she touched me I guess cause I got some of her in my head."

"Rogue touched you?" Macy looked shocked. "She wasn't wearing her gloves?"

I thought about it for a second. "She did." I answered slowly. "I'm not really sure what happened. But it wasn't like the past couple times, with just a quick transformation and then change right back."

The Professor's eyebrows were knitted together as he listened.

"What do you mean, Rory?" He asked patiently.

I hesitated, thinking of how to explain it. The Professor would want to hear every little thing, but trying to remember it was like reaching my arm through a hole to grab something just out of reach. I could touch little pieces of it, but not enough to fully get a hold.

"It was…. Like she was in my head." I tried, searching for the right words. "Like she was fighting with me. Absorbing my power but feeding me at the same time." I shrugged, unsatisfied with the explanation.

The Professor gave a thoughtful hum from behind his hands, which were folded in front of his mouth. Macy just looked at me, confusion written all over her face.

"What does that mean?" Dr. McCoy asked the Professor, removing the wires from my skin. Apparently, I was done being tested. Fine by me. I hated hospitals.

"I'm not quite sure, Hank." The Professor responded. Macy and I exchanged a look. I got the feeling if the Professor didn't know, there wasn't much of a chance that anyone else would.

"What exactly does Rogue do?" I asked, hoping to maybe figure something out myself.

"Rogue is a very powerful mutant, with the ability to absorb another persons memories, personalities, and in the case of another mutant, their powers for a short period of time." The Professor supplied, still deep in thought. "Her power is harmful to those she touches so she wears gloves to protect herself and others. The fact that you had an episode while she was wearing her gloves is very troubling."

"Maybe there was a hole?" Macy offered. The Professor gave a nod but didn't look like he believed that theory. He sat in silence, staring off into space while the rest of us tried to think of a solution.

"Rory, is it?" Dr. McCoy asked me, laying a hand on my arm. My mind absorbed his view of the last few minutes as I fought to not turn blue and nodded.

"You seem to be just fine." He went on, lifting his clipboard like he expected me to understand the scribbles written on it. "Just an unusually large case of fatigue. I would advise you to not to anything to strenuous for the next two days, but after that you should be fine."

I nodded to show I understood and moved to hop off the table when the Professor raised his hand to stop me.

"Macy, would you touch Rory's hand?"

Macy obliged and my brain was washed over with the few days in between now and the last time she touched me. I felt my eye color change briefly but everything else stayed the same.

"Interesting."

"Professor?" Macy's voice mixed with mine, hoping he'd clarify.

"Rory resisted the change." He said, his blue eyes staring into mine. "Her powers are maturing."

"I did it earlier too." I said, nodding excitedly. "When Dr. McCoy lifted me onto the table I resisted turning all fuzzy."

Dr. McCoy gave a snort, I think finding my comment funny. The Professor simply hummed again, his eyes lighting up slightly.  
>"Professor," Macy piped up, looking at her watch, "I have to get back to class. Is it alright if I leave?"<p>

"Yes, yes, of course." He waved his hand in understanding. "Would you take Rory as well? I suspect she would like to catch up on the three days she's missed."

I laughed nervously, trying not to groan. I had completely forgotten about schoolwork. I hadn't even been to one class and I was already behind by three days. Not really the best way to start off a school year.

I shrugged on a hoodie lying by the table and followed Macy out into the hall.

"Rory?" I turned around at the Professor's call. "I'd like to talk to you later. Would you come by my office around three thirty today? If you're not too busy, of course."

"Sure thing, Professor." I nodded. He gave me a confirming smile and the door whooshed shut.


	8. Chapter 8

**Holy shit, man. It's been a while huh? Please don't kill me? I promise I have reasons. Not great reasons, but reasons. I blame second semester of senior year, emotional roller-coasters, and death in the family. So there, reasons. I'm not gonna make any more promises with this one, cause for some reason I'm stuck with things and I'm going into college in the fall so classes might get in the way. I will promise that I will continue to write this one. It may just take a while...**

**So, there is some scientific stuff in this that if you know anything about science you'll go "Yeah... that can't happen." We're in a world where genetic mutations leapt forwards about a million years, give or take. So I took liberties with my science-y stuff. Just don't tell my best friend. She'd kill me. **

**Please take the time to review. They light up my day like Jubilee and her fireworks. And for all of you who add this to their favorites/alerts, you my friends are my favorite people. You make this little writer keep chugging away at this plot.**

**Thanks so much for reading. Please enjoy :]**

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><p>"I just don't understand what the big deal is."<p>

"The big deal is that you have no idea about any of the things that define so many of our childhoods!" Jack exclaimed.

It was lunchtime and Macy and Jack were arguing again. They'd gotten into about five within the past hour, and so far Macy was winning, 3-2. Jack was trying to even the score with the new topic of Macy's depressing childhood.

"TV isn't essential in life, Jack." Macy said, rolling her eyes and grabbing a salad off the bar.

"When you're a child in America it is!" He insisted, waving his tray for emphasis. Macy shot me a glance that said, "See what I have to deal with?"

"Pete, help me out here." Jack whined, looking over my head. I turned to find Peter's chest inches from my nose. He was so close I had to crane my head back to find his face.

"I'm Russian." His voice was like thunder rumbling in the distance; deep and powerful, yet oddly soothing. My toes curled in my shoes as I felt something like vibrations coming from his words. "I don't watch TV."

Jack gaped at the giant, his jaw dropping. Macy rolled her eyes again and sat down at a table, pulling the group with her. Jack seemed to recover as we sat down though, and threw himself back into the argument. I just listened to the two of them argue and tried to eat, but I was having some difficulties. Macy had bought me some biking gloves to wear while I was unconscious. She's so thoughtful that way. They were leather and covered my hands with holes on top of each of my knuckles and a patch on the tops of my hands to let them breathe. Around the wrists were Velcro straps to ensure they wouldn't fall off accidently. I loved them. I was no longer in danger of accidently becoming someone else because of a handshake. But unwrapping the plastic wrap from my sandwich was proving to be challenge I couldn't quite master.

"Seriously, Pete," Jack said after a rant about Rugrats, "you don't watch TV?"

Peter simply shrugged and continued to eat. Jack shook his head in disbelief before stabbing a piece of chicken on his plate. Apparently, the argument was done and the score was still in Macy's favor. Our table fell silent except for my failure at gaining access to my food. I guess Peter got bored watching me struggle or simply took pity on me because he reached across and peeled back the wrapping enough for me to get.

"Thanks." I blushed, ashamed of my inability to function with gloves. "So, you're actually Russian?" I asked. He nodded and made a flattening motion with his hand in the air next to him. I suppose it was his way of saying when he was little, but he was so tall it looked like he was miming petting a person my height.

"The Professor personally went and got him." Macy filled in around a mouthful of food. "He was only six or seven at the time."

"Working on his pop's farm, right Pete?" Jack added in. Peter nodded again but still remained silent.

"Don't talk much do you?" I asked him. He suddenly looked straight at me, his blue eyes staring into mine. The air around us seem to grow heavy and it seemed the all the noise in the room suddenly vanished. His eyes were hard as ice and glinted like steel in the light.

"Words are not always necessary for conversation." He finally answered, his voice low. And with one final look he gathered up his trash in one hand and left the table.

"Well." Jack sighed, breaking the silence. "That was interesting."

"Interesting?" I repeated, my mouth suddenly dry. I stared at Peter's empty seat, mentally kicking myself for being a jerk.

"Pete doesn't normally get upset." Jack explained, taking a sip of his drink. "Well, at least to that degree."

I groaned and hid my face in my hands. If there was any doubt that Peter didn't like me, it had definitely been removed. So much for making tons of friends. At that moment, I had a grand total of two. Well, three if you count Dr. McCoy, who had called me out of class earlier this morning because he wanted to test something only to send me back after I walked in the door to his office. Rogue hadn't even been in our room when I went to change into my own clothes. Her bed had been cleanly made and I noticed her dresser was swept of the picture and any other things that were hers. I was starting to think that she had moved out without telling anyone. Seems like I was doomed to be alone in a school full of outcasts.

_Bong_.

I picked my head up and looked through the window at the big clock tower. My stomach dropped as I saw the time.

"Shit!"

Jack yelped in surprise, his grape soda spilling in his lap as I jumped up out of my seat. Macy checked her watch and shot me a look.

"You're gonna be late." She reminded me, taking a sip of her water. I rolled my eyes and grabbed my bag, before taking off.

It wasn't until I got halfway down the hall that I remembered I had never actually been to the Professor's office. Glancing up and down the hall I tried to make a decision. I was already late and really didn't want to get lost in this ginormous building forever.

_Macy? _I called in my head, hoping from one foot to the other in my head. I felt silly, calling for her like a child, but I didn't know what else to do.

_Left, then up the stairs. _I heard her sigh in my head. I could just imagine her shaking her head at me. I didn't care. It wasn't the first time I had asked for directions somewhere and it certainly wouldn't be the last. I was awful with directions.

I ran up the stairs, skipping two at a time and rounded the corner. Macy's mental map said the Professor's office was just at the end of the hall and I could still make it with only being five minutes late. That was okay, I reasoned. I'm new; I haven't been properly shown around, five minutes late would be forgivable. Especially with the Professor.

"Watch out!"

I was so wrapped up with my thoughts I didn't see the girl right in front of me. Digging my heals in to the floor, I tried to stop but ended up sliding across the hardwood. I closed my eyes, bracing myself for the impact. But it never came.

I slid forward and felt like I had passed through an invisible tank of ice water. My nerves tingled like the time I had accidently stuck a fork in the toaster when I was little. I could feel my powers wrestling with something, trying to keep a hold of it, but only managing a small bit.

"You ok?"  
>I looked up from where I had fallen on the floor (my momentum had carried me too far) and saw a girl about my age watching me curiously. Her brown eyes shone with concern but also a bit of humor at my situation.<p>

"You scared the crap outa me there." She admitted, offering me a hand up. "Didn't anyone teach you to look where you're going?"

"Kitty?" I asked, my powers finally hooking on to something solid. "That's your name right?"

She gave me a weird look, like she was trying to remember when she had told me that.

"Uh, yeah? And you are?"

My cheeks burned as I realized my social blunder. "Rory. I'm new here."

"Oh, so you're the one who passed out!" Kitty instantly cheered up at the realization. I simply blinked in surprise. I didn't realize that my encounter with Rogue was common knowledge.

"Uh, yeah I guess." It was my turn to be hesitant. I picked up my bag, trying to make my embarrassment less evident.

"So where were you off to in such a hurry?" She asked.

"The Professor's office. I'm supposed to meet with him." I explained. "Talk about my stay here I guess."

"Great! I'll take you there!" Kitty chirped and before I could say anything, grabbed my hand and took off a run. Except she didn't turn to continue down the hall. Instead she headed straight towards the wall.

"Wait, Kitty!" I started to say, before she disappeared through the wall, dragging me along behind. As we passed through, I got the feeling someone had cracked an egg on my head and the yoke was trickling down my body, covering me in a cold, thin film that made the hair on my arms and the back of my neck stand on edge. She dragged me through several rooms, yelling greetings and apologies to the people in them. Only a few of them looked surprised. I guess living here means you have to expect weird things at any time.

We came to a stop in front of two polished wooden doors. Kitty let go of my hand and gave me a warm smile. I tried to smile back but my muscles were slowly regaining feeling so only about half of my face responded.

"Here you go! The Professor's office, courtesy of the Shadowcat Express." She said, giving me a mock solute.

"Thanks." I managed, rubbing feeling back into my fingers. Kitty gave me a nod and turned to leave, wishing me luck. She got almost halfway down the hall before turning back to me with a quizzical expression.

"Hey Rory?" She called. "How'd you know my name?"

I blushed. I forgot she didn't know about my powers. But really I didn't know either. I had passed through her back there; I didn't physically touch her. I opened my mouth to say so, but the loud clock chime cut me off, signaling class was starting. Kitty glanced at her watch and took off down the hall, waving good-bye.

I stood there staring after her, a little confused. She was a weird one alright. But she seemed ok. And just maybe, I had made a friend all on my own. The thought was comforting and gave me enough of a confidence boost to open the door to the Professor's office without hesitation.

"Ah, Rory. Good to see you up and about."

The Professor was sitting behind his desk when I came in, a folder spread out in front of him.

"I'm sorry I'm late, Professor. I got lost." I apologized, taking a seat in one of the chairs in front of his desk. I suddenly got the feeling like I was in the principal's office, only I wasn't in trouble. I think…

"It's perfectly all right." He waved my excuse away with an understanding smile. "Classes going well?"

I fidgeted in my seat a bit. "Well, sir, I only went to two before lunch and Dr. McCoy called me out to see me during the second one."

"Really?" The Professor asked, raising an eyebrow. "Did he find anything?"

"I'm not sure, honestly." I shrugged. "The minute I got back to his office, he dismissed me back to class without seeing me. When I left he was muttering about DNA and writing notes on his clipboard."

The Professor nodded and propped his elbows on the desk, folding his hands together. He was quiet, taking in my words while studying me with his eyes. I imagined I could hear his mind whirring away, opening and closing mental files and sorting the information for later use.

"Professor," I began, wiggling in my chair to try and get comfortable, "do you have any idea what my powers do?"

He raised an amused eyebrow at me, the corner of his mouth curving up. The gleam in his eye was like when that kid in class knows the answer to your question but is holding it back, just to watch you squirm. And boy was I squirming.

"Some." He answered vaguely. It suddenly occurred to me that the Professor might just be enjoying this. The old guy in the wheelchair might just be more sadistic than anyone thought.

"I'd like to hear your idea on the matter first, though."

I blinked in my surprise. That, I wasn't expecting at all. Guess the Professor really was a teacher from his sweater-vest all the way to his ability to read your mind. God, you'd never be able to pass notes in class with him around. Or lie about homework. I vowed I'd always finish assignments in his class.

"Macy says I'm a Shifter." I said nervously, throwing out an answer in class that I hoped was correct. The Professor raised his eyebrows politely, inviting me to continue.

"I change into people." I went on I get their memories and thoughts. I feel what they've felt, think what they've thought, and look at things they way they would. But it's all touch based. Nothing happens when I shake hands with these on." I held up my hands and shook them a little, showing off my gloves.

"Except," I scowled in confusion, remembering something, "I changed into Jack when we first got here without touching him at all."

"Mr. Sanchez? Explain."

"His slime… gunk… goo-thing." I lamely provided. "It came flying out a window and landed on me, covering me in the stuff. I changed into him and, now that I think of it," I scowled again, looking at the ceiling, "I only got little pieces of his memory."

"Pieces?"

"I only know about his powers. Nothing about his life."

"Interesting." The Professor mused, his eyes lighting up some. I had a feeling I just gave him another piece to the jigsaw that is me.

"Professor?"

"Just forming a theory. Please continue. Has this happened with anyone else?"

I gave a thoughtful sigh and my focus on the ceiling increased. There was a crack sort of shaped like a crescent moon in the corner behind the Professor. I frowned. My fascination with the ceiling was a little distracting, but everybody does that. I wonder why? What do we find so irresistible about ceilings that we constantly stare at them? They don't have answers and yet we immediately look to them in our times of need.

"Rory?"

I ripped my gaze from the ceiling to meet the Professor's eyes. His eyebrow was raised again, like we were sharing a joke about the fascination of ceilings.

"Sorry." I mumbled, my face growing warm. "What did you say?"

"I asked if your episode with Mr. Sanchez has happened with anyone else during your stay here."

"Well, there was that thing with Rogue." I shrugged. "But I didn't change into her. I just got some weird feedback, I dunno why though. Oh, Professor? Is Rogue still going to room with me?"

The Professor nodded before giving a sigh. "Rogue is very aware of what her powers do to the people she comes in contact with and because of that, she's very guarded. She feels as if she is an outsider in a group of outsiders because of her inability to engage in physical contact with other people."

He gave me a look like he expected me to say something. I just wiggled in my seat again.

"We are mutants, Rory," The Professor said, with a tone of sadness, "but we are still people. We feel how everyone feels, think how everyone thinks. We feel sadness, pain, loss, and especially loneliness. It's through these feelings that we act, whether it be for good or for worse."

"Professor?"

"Rogue is a particularly lonely girl, Rory. I have asked her to remain in the room you will be sharing in the hopes that the two of you will find common ground and share it."

"That is extremely punny, Professor." I said with an uneasy smile.

He gave a small chuckle. "Yes, I suppose it is. Now, it seems we've gotten off topic. We were discussing your powers: have you had any other unusual occurrences like those with Mr. Sanchez and Rogue?"

I gave a nod and motioned behind me towards the door. "Just now, as I was coming up to meet with you, I ran into Kitty. Or, _through_ her, I guess is a better way to say it."

"But you did not physically touch her?"

I shook my head. "No, but I could feel my powers fighting with something. Like, it caught something but couldn't hold on to it. All I got was her name."

"Fascinating."

I wasn't even going to ask. He was going to explain in three…. two… one…

"You are correct in your assessment that your powers appear to be based upon touch. My personal witnesses with your experiences with Macy and your mother lead me to that conclusion a few days ago. The only question was to what effect." The Professor began to explain, his eyes lighting up like he just won first place at the science fair, and I was his blue-ribbon project.

"Judging by your descriptions of what happens when you come into direct physical contact with other people it appears you have the ability to copy a person's DNA, explaining how you are able to gain not only a physical but also mental change. We will have to do tests to determine the extent of this ability."

"Tests?" I asked, suddenly confused.

"Here at the mansion, not only do we continue you in your education to expand you mind, we also help you discover the limit of your powers. Our goal at this school is to provide you with the skills to live the life of your choosing, which tends to be easier if you are within full control of your abilities and not drawing unnecessary attention to yourself." He explained, with a small smile.

"As to the peculiar instances you just describe, my only assumption is that they were the result of indirect contact with DNA. Mr. Sanchez's projectiles do come from his body, so it would make sense that it would be infused with his DNA, thus the reaction you had to being covered in it. If there was only a small amount then I can imagine how you would only get pieces, as you described it. Again, accurate knowledge of this can only come through testing.

"The cases between Rogue and Kitty are most perplexing, though." Here, the Professor stopped to ponder and frown at the file in front of him. "I can only imagine that with Rogue you caught some dead skin cells. Those would carry enough DNA for you to absorb and experience what you described, but it's curious you haven't had a relapse. Perhaps your body recognized the harmful DNA and purged its self of it."

I wrinkled my nose in disgust. No matter if it's a good thing, the word "purge" just sounded nasty.

"As to your encounter with Kitty." The Professor continued, almost to himself now. "Kitty has the ability to rearrange the molecules in her body from a solid to an almost gaseous state, allowing her to pass through solid objects. Perhaps as you fell through her body, your powers were able to attach themselves to a small portion of her body's DNA. That could explain the feeling of things slipping through your fingers, so to speak."

"I guess that makes sense." I said slowly, trying to wrap my mind around it. Was all that even scientifically possible? "So, we know what my powers do. Or at least, we kinda know. Now what?"

The Professor gave me his best mad scientist smile and suddenly I wished I hadn't asked that question.

"Now," he answered, "we take you to train."


	9. Chapter 9

**Hi there. Promise not to kill me for being away so long? I did tell you, I can't promise when this one will be done. It's my problem child. That and I've been rediscovering myself as a writer, which basically I went through six month of hating everything I wrote. But now we're good.**

**It's short, I know, but it serves a purpose. My muse has come back to me and I have roughly two weeks left of break before classes start. So I will write more, and maybe(?) get something up before I go back.**

**I don't own X-men. Please see a specialist if you believe otherwise. I do own Rory and Macy and Jack and my ever elusive plot-line. Take that and will go all Lady Deathstrike on your ass.**

**Also, since the website now has this nifty ****little cover art option, I figured I'd ask if anyone has any fan-art they'd be willing to let me use for my story? I can't draw worth shit, and I don't want to just steal someone's work of the internet. Any takers?**

**Please review and add to your Favorites/Alerts. They make me smile and remind me that people other than me want to see this accomplished. And so, enjoy. **

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><p>I sat on the tile floor, my head in between my knees. I was dripping with sweat and I felt like I was going to fall over from exhaustion. I'd never been so tired in my life and that was saying something. Last season, I'd been captain of two soccer teams, both with sadistic coaches that liked nothing more than to make you run till you puked and then make you run some more. I was in the best shape of my life and here I was, gasping like a fish out of water, my muscles screaming for mercy.<p>

Mutant training was kicking my ass.

Letting out a groan, I fell back to look at the ceiling. The windowless room stared back at me, mocking me in my fatigue. What time was it? It felt like hours, days even, since I had left with the Professor from his office for the training room. Surely, it was almost time for dinner by now. I tried to raise my arm to look at my watch and gave up almost immediately. Way too tired. I'd have to just resort to just turning my head. My eyes landed on the plastic face and I told myself not to cry. We had only been here for a half hour.

"Rory? Are you alright?"

"Five-by-five," I managed to gasp out. The Professor just sat in his wheelchair, calmly watching as I attempted to refrain from throwing up my lungs. Our training, so far, had consisted of rapid transformations of the few people I had in my memory bank: Beast, Macy, my mother, and Jack. All physical changes as fast as I could for as long as I could. So far my record was five changes in forty-five seconds.

The Professor kept insisting that our powers were like muscles – the more we use them, the stronger they get and the more control we have over them. I wanted to kill him, comparing sex changes to push-ups. It was beyond uncomfortable, switching between bodies. I could feel organs regrow, rearrange, and disappear every time I changed. It wasn't like I was putting on a new pair of pants or changing shoes each time. I was completely rewriting DNA here!

But I could see his point. I had to be in control. With my powers, I couldn't afford to have an accident. My parents had been proof of that enough. If this was the way to avoid changing into a different person at the slightest touch, so be it. But, _hell_, it was uncomfortable.

Suddenly, the smell of dry, salted meat filled my nose. My eyes flew open to see a huge piece of jerky being waved in front of my face. I was on it faster than a dog on a chipmunk.

"Geez, Rory! Almost bit my hand off there."

I looked up at Bobby as he laughed at me. Bobby was another one of the students here. He had been walking down the hall past us when the Professor enlisted him to help. So far, he hadn't done much besides make my water really cold and make jokes at my sad mutant fitness.

I bit at the air, baring my teeth. "What can I say, Frosty? Never get between a girl and her jerky."

Bobby chuckled and shook his head at my nickname for him. The Professor had explained that Bobby could produce ice and snow from his body as well as turn himself into a giant Popsicle. Everything except the bandanna he wore across his forehead. Maybe it was like some magic ice pack; the source of all his power? He insisted he just turned his body into ice, although I wasn't convinced that if I took his bandana he wouldn't turn to slush. He was nice, though, and kept giving me snacks to keep my energy up. Apparently, using your powers meant keeping a high calorie count, especially if you change from body to body.

"Are you ready to go again, Rory?" The Professor asked. Bobby snickered at me as I pouted.

"Just a second, Professor," I answered, slowly getting up. My leg had fallen asleep while sitting and my arms were limp. I could feel the knots in my back straining as I stretched. Tough it out, Drive.

"So, what next?"

The Professor gave me one of his grins that I had come to be frightened of. Nothing good ever came from those smiles. At least, nothing fun and definitely nothing painless.

"We're going to test your control," he nodded to Bobby. I looked between the boy in front of me and the man in the wheel chair.

Control? Easy. I looked Bobby straight in the eye, my gaze impassive.

"Look, Bobby, no offense, but you're just not my type."

Bobby's mouth fell open into a slight "o" and he blinked back at me. His confusion was priceless. I turned back to the Professor, giving him an expectant look. He simply sighed in exasperation, but I could see the humor in his eyes.

"Take off your gloves." I obeyed, listening as he continued, "What we are going to test is your control of your _powers_. I want you to try and use Bobby's powers without changing your physical shape. In fact, only try to take his powers."

"Sir?"

"Try to avoid copying all of his DNA. Only take the parts that determine his mutant ability. I will be able to tell if you fail or not."

I grimaced. So much for the back-up plan. Really, this having your teacher be a telepath was kinda a pain. Sighing, I faced Bobby and held up my hand as if asking for a high five. He glanced at the Professor before raising his.

"Just out of curiosity," he grinned like a Cheshire cat, "what exactly is your type?"

I rolled my eyes before pressing our hands together. I felt the familiar burn of my powers taking in Bobby's DNA, but I tried to control what I got. No luck. Two seconds later, I lay flat on my back, once again staring at the paneled ceiling. My body slowly returned to normal, but I couldn't fight the slight shiver that came from the deep cold inside of me.

"Rory, are you alright?"

I ignored the Professor's question, watching the movie of Bobby's life. I heard him give a tired sigh after a minute.

"We'll try again tomorrow."


	10. Chapter 10

**Yo! Here's another chapter. Plot's moving along now, maybe one more 'til the action starts up. I have plans! They just take a while to be put into motion, is all. **

**Please review and add to your Favorites/Alerts. They remind me that people other than me want to see this accomplished. Also, fan art? Let me know if yes! Enjoy!**

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><p>"Come on, Ror, it's not that bad."<p>

I shot my best friend skeptical look.

"I can't control my powers, and you say that _it's not that bad?_" I whispered back. "If Superman couldn't control his powers and ended up destroying Metropolis instead of saving it, would you call it "not that bad"?"

"Are you comparing yourself to Superman now?"

I rolled my eyes at Jack's smirk as Macy's hand shot out to smack his head. He ducked, sniggering at his own joke, only to be beaned by a whiteboard marker.

"Mr. Sanchez, as attractive as Miss Ward may be, please keep your attention to the front of the room."

"Sorry, Ms. Wright."

Jack's megawatt smile settled back into his normal smirk as our teacher turned back around. Macy simply shot him a warning glare, jotting down a note. The three of us were sitting in a lecture on mutant history, a subject I had found completely fascinating for about ten minutes. Unfortunately, the class had a tendency for running for almost two hours. Which meant we were trapped.

"All I'm saying is, I have to get this under control," I insisted.

"Ror, most mutants don't learn how to fully control their powers until maybe six months after they learn they have them. Some take a whole year, even two," Macy sighed. "You can't just expect to be a master after just three weeks."

"Most mutants don't have to worry about turning into someone else because of a handshake!" I hissed, before getting whapped by a marker.

"Least you have the gloves," Jack shrugged after a moment, his voice low. "They at least give you a little more control and comfort. As long as you keep them on, you can learn at a decent rate."

I sighed and nodded in exasperation, looking down at my leather clad fingers. They were right of course. I was being too impatient. But I was so tired of waiting. Everyone else had control of theirs, and they were the same age as me. I huffed angrily, watching my drumming fingers before returning my attention up to the front of the room.

I jumped in surprise. The Professor was standing in front of the class, now giving a lecture. Literally standing. In front of everyone. And no one was saying _anything_.

"Miss Drive?"

I blinked. The Professor had disappeared leaving Ms. Wright in his place. She frowned at me, arms crossed and marker lazily floating in the air, ready to peg one of us in the head. I blinked again, harder this time, and rubbed at my eyes.

"Miss Drive, are we not interesting enough to keep your attention?"

"Just a little tired, ma'am," I mumbled, my face growing hot.

Ms. Wright narrowed her eyes at me, but didn't pursue it anymore, turning back to the board. I pawed at my eyes again, giving myself a good shake as well. That was seriously weird. Macy cast me a sideways glance, one curiously worried eyebrow raised. I just shrugged and settled back to try to pay attention.

"Don't worry about your powers, ok?" Macy said later as we walked out of class. "Trust me, it's not a big deal. The fact that you have any control at this point is amazing."

"Really?" I asked drily. "Sure doesn't seem like it."

"It took Jack a whole month until he wouldn't drip like a leaky faucet," Macy shrugged, ignoring Jack's indignant sputtering. "And even now, you'd better find cover when he sneezes."

"Hey!"

"Seriously, Ror," she said with a smile, "you'll be fine. Don't worry about a thing."

I gave her a resigned nod, trying not to sulk as we made our way out to the green. Autumn was in full swing now, but it was still nice enough out to enjoy the sun without too much of a breeze. Even then, most of us weren't cold. Apparently being genetically enhanced meant having more of a resistance to cold and heat, if only by a slight amount. The three of us flopped down on the grass, pulling out books and homework to maybe feel somewhat accomplished for the day. Jack continued to grumble about being a faucet, while Macy helped me with my algebra.

"Rory!"

I looked up from my homework to see Kitty beaming down at me. Her bag thrown over one shoulder and her hair pulled up into a tight ponytail, she looked like she had just gotten back from the gym. Which probably was true. Physical exercise was an expectation at the academy. Not a requirement, but certainly an expectation. We were practically a school full of superheroes: who wouldn't want to train to maybe be part of the X-men?

"S'up?" I greeted, flashing her a smile as she sat down next to me, stealing Jack's water bottle. Kitty had been part of the group before I got there and was already used to Jack's whining, even if she often gave him a reason to do so.

"You're always wearing those gloves!" she exclaimed, giving my hands a once over.

"You came over just to talk about Rory's _gloves_?" Macy asked, shaking her head.

Kitty grinned sheepishly. "I was talking to Rogue earlier. She's having problems with her new gloves and I remembered Rory had a pair so," she shrugged, trailing off.

"Rogue got new gloves?"

"Yeah, since your guys' little incident that's all she's been grumbling about," Kitty said, blinking at me in surprise. "You didn't know that?"

I shook my head. "We don't really talk," I admitted.

"But you guys live together!"

"Not everyone is best friends with their roommate, Kitty," Macy scolded, flicking the girl's nose.

"Does everyone know about that?" I asked, grimacing. "Our 'little incident'?"

"Students, teachers, janitorial staff – _everyone_," Jack confirmed, nodding his head sagely. "It's been the talk of the school for the past three weeks. People are even placing bets on what happens next."

"What are the odds?" Kitty asked, ignoring my horrified look.

"Mostly, people wanna see a fight," he informed us, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively at me. "Good money on that. Most people say Rogue will kick your ass, Ror."

"Probably true."

"Hey!"

"She's part of The Team, Rory. You'd be screwed."

"A couple people," Jack continued, raising his voice over us, "are betting nothing happens though. Rogue gets new gloves; Rory figures her shit out. No blow, no scrap."

"Laaaame!" Kitty drawled, flopping backwards into the grass. "I wanna see a fight!"

"Kitty, use some kinda logic," Macy chided, not looking up from her homework. "Rogue may be impulsive, but she's not stupid. She won't break the rules."

Kitty huffed in displeasure before shooting me a toothy grin. Like most high schools, it was against school policy for students to fight. Unless of course, it was for training purposes. Then they could beat the crap out of each other all they wanted, so long as there wasn't any maiming involved.

"Besides," Macy continued, "there's no reason for them to fight. Rory collapsed because of an overload of her powers, not because she got punched in the eye."

"Mace," I groaned, hiding my face in my hands, "you're not helping."

It was bad enough I knew I wasn't fully in control of my powers, but by the sound of it, so did the entire school. I felt like people were constantly watching me, just waiting for something to go wrong. Jack had talked about it happening before, too. How kids would come in and periodically just have random outbursts of their powers. Just last week there was a boy who lost control for just two seconds and accidently melted a kitchen table. I didn't see it myself, but Jack said it had been impressive.

Were people really expecting Rogue and I to fight? I couldn't help but think just how badly that would end up. Macy was right: Rogue was part of The Team. She's been dealing with her powers for years and had as much control as she could get at this point. Me, I considered myself lucky if I didn't faint every three days from overworking myself. The Professor said not to take off my gloves, and I hadn't since I'd gotten them. But that didn't really stop me from accidently touching people with the exposed skin on my arms if I wore a t-shirt. No, fighting, even for 'training purposes', would only end up with me back on that table being poked at by Dr. McCoy.

Which reminded me of something.

"Guys," I spoke up, "did you see anything weird in class today?"

"We go to a school for mutants," Jack pointed out, scratching something out in his notebook. "You'll have to be more specific."

Kitty rolled her eyes. "What kinda weird?" She questioned through a yawn.

"Like the Professor out of his chair."

"What, you mean, like, standing?" Kitty propped herself up to look at me better. "Upright and everything?"

I nodded.

"The Professor hasn't been out of his chair in almost forty years now," Macy contradicted, her hazel eyes concerned. "That's what Beast told me."

"No one's see him up in a really long time," Kitty nodded, laying back down and stretching. "You probably just daydreamed a bit, that's all. Happens to me all the time."

"Except for you it's about boys."

"Shut it, Jack."

Macy wasn't convinced though. "You ok, Ror?"

I gave her a smile, careful not to let my eyes flash as she touched my arm. "Five-by-five."


End file.
